"Greed is a bottomless pit which exhausts the person in an endless effort to satisfy the need without ever reaching satisfaction." ~Erich Fromm. Greed brought America to where we are today and continues to maintain our economy. But does greed truly make someone a monster?
One place where we a large amount of greed is the pharmaceutical industry. Lately, it seems that those who supply the life-saving drugs that we as a society depend on, are those who we have to protect ourselves from as more and more people find themselves on drug regimens that are based on market trends rather than on medical necessity. We often see this in nursing homes where the residents often lack the ability to ask questions or are not truly informed about the drugs included and can not properly consent. Many a time these regimens are prescribed by an intermediary pharmacy for the long term and often receive kickbacks from the pharmaceutical industry. Situations such as these are also found in the prescription of many well-known anti-psychotics and anti-epileptics to children to curb many behaviors that, in the past, would have been dealt with in less invasive ways. This is often because the doctors prescribing these drugs are on the payroll or are influenced in other ways by drugs representatives on behalf of their superiors in the industry.
The individuals behind schemes such as this can truly be considered monstrous because of their greed. Drugs are often mismarketed illegally or promoted to those who do not and would not know better. As many companies raise their bottom line at the cost of those left in the dark, we see how greed can change the morals of an individual and by extension, a whole corporation. If one were to discover that a doctor was acting dishonestly by peddling unneeded drugs, it is assumed that one would make the switch to another doctor. However, this is not always possible when it come to the supply of drugs as the number of companies that manufacture drugs in rather finite.
The fact than many in the pharmaceutical game are willing to set aside their morals to make a quick buck at the expense of taking advantage of our geriatric community or to alter the lives of children via use of unneeded drugs truly vilifies the individual and becomes a monster in the eyes of those it affects.
One place where we a large amount of greed is the pharmaceutical industry. Lately, it seems that those who supply the life-saving drugs that we as a society depend on, are those who we have to protect ourselves from as more and more people find themselves on drug regimens that are based on market trends rather than on medical necessity. We often see this in nursing homes where the residents often lack the ability to ask questions or are not truly informed about the drugs included and can not properly consent. Many a time these regimens are prescribed by an intermediary pharmacy for the long term and often receive kickbacks from the pharmaceutical industry. Situations such as these are also found in the prescription of many well-known anti-psychotics and anti-epileptics to children to curb many behaviors that, in the past, would have been dealt with in less invasive ways. This is often because the doctors prescribing these drugs are on the payroll or are influenced in other ways by drugs representatives on behalf of their superiors in the industry.
The individuals behind schemes such as this can truly be considered monstrous because of their greed. Drugs are often mismarketed illegally or promoted to those who do not and would not know better. As many companies raise their bottom line at the cost of those left in the dark, we see how greed can change the morals of an individual and by extension, a whole corporation. If one were to discover that a doctor was acting dishonestly by peddling unneeded drugs, it is assumed that one would make the switch to another doctor. However, this is not always possible when it come to the supply of drugs as the number of companies that manufacture drugs in rather finite.
The fact than many in the pharmaceutical game are willing to set aside their morals to make a quick buck at the expense of taking advantage of our geriatric community or to alter the lives of children via use of unneeded drugs truly vilifies the individual and becomes a monster in the eyes of those it affects.
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